The present invention relates generally to data communication, and more particularly to switching framed flows over packet-switched fabrics, for example, switching optical transport network (OTN) flows over Ethernet switch fabrics.
Communication of information in electronic form has increased rapidly over the past decades and continues to increase. As the volume of information communicated has increased, the rate at which the information is communicated has also increased. Additionally, previously independent producers and consumers of information are increasingly interconnected. Interconnections continue to increase between types of communication, for example, converged voice and data, and between geographic areas.
Information is often communicated using protocols that establish characteristics of the communication, such as how the information is arranged and how it is physically signaled. Many communication protocols are standardized by industry groups, international organizations, or other entities. Various standards are often targeted and work best for a specific type of information and type of physical communication medium and often particular network components may be designed to be particularly suited for communication or processing of information in accordance with a particular standard.
Unfortunately, individual standards and relative predominance of use of the standards may evolve over time, new standards may arise, and all may occur within a lifetime of an installed network component, or a desired lifetime of a previously designed network component. Moreover, the different standards may specify different information rates, increasing inconvenience relating to use of installed or previous designs for network components.